Paint brush wiper

ABSTRACT

A novel paint brush wiper made from sheet metal, having an initial flat form adapted to be subsequently readily bent and deformed into an operative three dimensional shape, suitable for removable attachment over the open top of a paint can or the like and held interlockably on said can against accidental displacement forces tending to unwantedly displace said wiper sidewise, for-and-aft, upwardly and downwardly.

United States Patent 1 [111 3,776,415

Pfeffer Dec. 4, 1973 PAINT BRUSH WIPER 3,133,668 5/1964 Heise 220 90[76] Inventor: William J. Pfeffer, 1015 Madison St., Manitowo Wi 54220Primary Examiner--Samuel B. Rothberg Pl d y 30 1972 AssistantExaminer-Steven M. Pollard [21] Appl. No.: 257,641 ABSTRACT A novelpaint brush wiper made from sheet metal, 8|. having an initi a1 flatform adapted to be Subsequently [58] Field llllllllllllllllllll 248/110readily bent and deformed into an operative three di- 222/570 mensionalshape, suitable for removable attachment over the open top of a paintcan or the like and held [56] References Cited interlockably on said canagainst accidental displacement forces tending to unwantedly displacesaid wiper UNITED STATES PATENTS sidewise, for-and-aft, upwardly anddownwardly. 2,803,374 8/1957 Cash 220/90 2,919,828 1/1960 Lemke 220/90 4Claims, 7 Drawing Figures PATENTED DE!) 41975 PAINT BRUSH WIPER Thepurpose of this invention is to provide a new and novel paint brushwiper that is removably yet firmly securable to the open top of aconventional paint can.

Another purpose of this invention is to recycle, salvage, and convertthe discarded heaps of suitable sheet material such as sheet metal scrapinto useful paint brush wipers. All of our disposal techniques are understrong criticism. Across the land, there is increasing support forresource recovery, and for combating solid waste pollution. Because thepresent invention can be made from only a very small portion of sheetmetal, it lends itself remarkably well to fabrication from the wastefragments of the sheet metal converting industry.

An object of this invention is the provision of a paint brush wiper thatis practical, inexpensive, efficient, economical, easy to install andeasy to install and remove from a paint can.

Another object is to provide a paint brush wiper all the parts of whichare initially flat and coplanar, for ease of stacking, packaging, andshipping, and which is subsequently easily bent to adapt and accommodateit to use on a paint can.

Still another object of this invention is the provision of a brush wiperall the parts of which are flat and coplanar, for detachable affixationflatwise on the top surface of a cover for a paint can for convenienceof shipment, distribution, display, and convenience of the customer.

Yet another object of this invention is to provide a paint brush wiperwhich can be readily adapted to paint cans of various sizes, by theenlargement or reduction in overall size of such brush wiper.

A further object is the provision of a paint brush wiper which can bereadily adapted to paint cans of various sizes by bendably accommodatingpertinent members of the wiper to the paint can dimensions.

Other specific features and many of the attendant advantages of thisinvention will be readily appreciated as the same becomes betterunderstood by reference to the following detailed description whenconsidered in connection with the accompanying drawings in which likereference numerals designate like parts throughout the figures thereofand wherein:

FIG. 1 is a plan view of the planar brush wiper invention;

FIG. 2 is a rear elevation view of the ,device shown in FIG. 1, showingthe interlockable arms thereof bent operatively downwardly as indicatedby'dotted lines;

FIG. 3 is a plan view showing the device of FIG. 2 operatively andinterlockably secured to the open top portion of a paint can;

FIG. 4 is a section view taken on line 44 of FIG. 3, showing in detailthe interlocking relation of the brush wiper device with the rim andbody portion of paint can;

FIG. 5 is a fragmentary plan view of a paint can and a removable covertherefor, and showing an afiixation tab on the blade of the wiperdetachably securing the wiper flatwise on and to the top planar surfaceof the cover, as by soldering and the like;

FIG. 6 is a side elevation view of the apparatus of FIG. 5, showing bydotted lines the means of disjoining and separating the wiper from theaffixation tab as by alternate reverse bending at their line ofjuncture; and

FIG. 7 is a fragmentary plan view of a modification showing the bicepsportion of the interlocking arm abuttable with the outer surface of theinner side wall of the trough, such as with the bead or lip thereof.

Referring now to the drawings, wherein like reference numerals designatelike or corresponding parts throughout the several views, there isgenerally indicated at 10 a conventional paint container comprising apaint can 11 and a cover 12 therefor, see FIG. 5.

Said conventional paint can 11 has a cylindrical body, a bottom, and isopen at the top, see FIG. 3. The top end portion of said can body isprovided with a conventional inwardly projecting circular rim meansgenerally indicated at 13, see FIG. 4.

The intumed rim 13 is secured on and along the top edge of the bodyportion of said can by reverse crimping and clamping a longitudinal edgeportion of said rim over said top edge, in inverted U-shape fashion,thereby forming a vertical circular bead or flange 14 around the topedge of said can body.

Projecting inwardly from the inner lower portion of said can flange 14is an annular horizontal berme or shoulder 15 from the inner edge ofwhich depends an annular trough generally indicated at 16.

Said annular trough 16 comprises an outer side wall 17 integrallyconnected to the inner edge of shoulder 15, a bottom 18, and an innerside wall 19 terminating in a reverse crimped beaded annular lip 21.

The top of bead 21 is disposed slightly below the level of the top ofcan flange 14.

Cover 12 is provided with a rim flange 22 and a pressed down annulargroove 22' press-fit and snugly receivable in trough l6, and the undersurface of said cover is engageable with said trough bead 21 when thecover is operatively disposed as a closure on can 1 1, see FIGS. 4 and5.

The above conventional can 11 and conventional cover 12 combine to makeup a conventional paint container 10 which provides the setting for thenew and novel paint brush wiper to which said wiper is adapted andoperatively applied, as hereinafter described.

The paint brush wiper generally indicated at 23, see FIG. 1, isfabricated or punched from a flat sheet metal member, 28 gauge thicknesshaving been found suitable, and sufficiently stiff; however theinvention is not limited to such thickness. Obviously the wiper devicecan be made of other material suitable for the intended purpose.

Conventional galvanized steel sheet metal has been found suitable as amaterial for making the brush wiper in that it is suitably flexible,that is, it is easily bent and deformed and adapts itself readily tochange of shape as hereinafter described.

In the event a die is made shaped to conform to the configuration of thebrush wiper, the wipers can be punched out from such sheet metal on apunching machine. However, fabrication of the wiper can be accomplishedby generally acceptable procedures, depending on the material used. I

The wiper comprises an elongated flat strip or blade member 24 havingfront and rear. longitudinal edges, respectively, and having an opengenerally U-shaped flat body portion generally indicated at 25 extendingrearwardly therefrom, and the ends of the legs 26 and 27 of saidU-shaped body being integrally connected to the rear edge of said bladeat points equally spaced from the ends of said blade, respectively. Thatis, the flat U-shaped body is disposed symmetrically about thetransverse axis of said blade and is coplanar with the blade. Said bladeis adapted to span the open top of said paint can and seat on the rimthereof. The legs 27 and 26 are also adapted to seat on the rim.

The curvilinear cross member, of the U-shaped body 25, generallyindicated at 28 is provided with an inwardly extending flat tongue 29and an oppositely disposed and outwardly extending flat finger tab 31,both projecting centrally from said cross member 28. Said tongue andfinger tab are coplanar with the flat U- shaped body 25.

A pair of oppositely disposed similar angular or curved arms generallyindicated at 32 and 33 extend inwardly from the inner edge portions oflegs 26 and 27, respectively. Said arms are flat and preferably rightangular in configuration comprising inwardly projecting biceps portions34 and 35 extending laterally from legs 26 and 27, respectively, andrearwardly extending forearm portions 36 and 37 projecting substantiallyat right angles from the ends of said biceps portions 34 and 35,respectively. Said flat arms are coplanar with said flat blade 24 andwith said flat U-shaped body 25.

In operation said arms 32 and 33 are bent downwardly substantially 90degrees, see FIGS. 2, 3 and 4, to positions generally indicated at 32and 33', with the biceps portions being now disposed in positions 34 and35 and the forearm portions in positions 36' and 37, respectively.

With such bent condition of the arms, the end portions of the flat blade24 and the end portions of legs 26 and 27 are seated on the rim 13 suchas on the flange 14 or bead 21 thereof, the blade 24 being disposed inspanning relation to the open top of the can, and the right angular arms32 and 33 are then slid under the annular trough 16, with the forearmportions disposed adjacent the under side or under surface of the bottomof the trough as at 38, see FIG. 4, and the ends of said forearmsdisposed adjacent an inner surface of said can, such as adjacent theinner surface or inner periphery of the cylindrical body side wall ofsaid can as at 39, see FIG. 3.

The tongue 29 is then pressed and bent downwardly into trough 16 withthe end of said tongue being disposed adjacent the inner surface of theinner sidewall 19 of said trough, as at 41, see FIG. 4, and engageabletherewith.

The sheet metal material being flexible, as defined above, is quiteeasily bent and the arms and tongue above mentioned will hold the shapeand position to which they were bent.

To remove the wiper from the can, one merely presses downwardly onfinger tab 31 thereby raising the tongue end from the trough and itsadjacence to side wall 19, and the wiper can then be retracted forwardlythereby removing the forearm from under the trough, and then lifting thewiper bodily from the rim of the can.

As above described and applied to the open top of the can, the wiper issecured against accidental downward displacement by the blade 24 beingseated on the rim 14 of the can, against significant upward displacementby the forearms 36 and 37 engaging the bottom 18 of trough 16, againstsignificant sidewise and rearward displacement by the forearm endsengaging with the cylindrical wall of the can, and against significantforward displacement by the engagement of the end of tongue 29 with theopposite side-wall 19 of trough l6.

To accommodate the wiper arms to the cylindrical wall of smallerdiameter cans, the arms can be bent downward less than such as 45, asgenerally indicated at 42, by dotted lines, see FIG. 2, to a dispositionadjacent such smaller diameter inner periphery.

To accommodate the wiper arms to the cylindrical wall of a largerdiameter cans the arms can be bent downward and outwardly such as suchas generally indicated at 43, by dotted lines, see FIG. 2, to adisposition adjacent such larger diameter inner periphery.

Obviously, the initial basic design of the wiper can be made indifferent sizes to accommodate the wiper to such corresponding cans,thereby negating the necessity of adapting the angular disposition ofthe arms to the particular can, as described above.

The above lesser and greater degree of bent disposition can also be usedto accommodate the wiper arms to can troughs of shallower depth, ifdesired.

The wiper can thus be readily adapted to paint cans of various sizes.

In lieu of the cooperative adjacency of the forearm ends with thecylindrical side wall of the can, see FIG. 7, such forearms can be madeshorter, tenninating such as indicated at 44, thereby permitting aresulting cooperative adjacence of the bent down biceps portions 34 and35' to an inner surface of said can such as adjacent the outer surfaceof the inner side wall of said trough which terminates in bead or lip 21and indicated at 44, thereby to substitute and secure against sidewiseand rearward displacement of the wiper device.

Obviously the extent and length of the tongue 29, relative to itsoperative adjacence to lip 21, can be varied to compensate for theeffects of changes in the lengths of the forearms or the cooperativeadjacence of the biceps portions to the can lip 21.

A paint laden bristle brush, applicator, or the like can be drawn acrossthe blade edge 45 in the usual and customary manner to remove, scrape orwipe excess paint from such brush.

In its planar or entirely flat condition a wiper device can be afiixedto the top planar surface of the cover 12 for the can 11, see FIG. 5. Inthis event the blade 24 is provided with an affixation tab 46 projectingcentrally from blade 24 and planar therewith. The tab 46 can be affixedto the can cover by any means such as by soldering, cementing, adhesive,or the like. To facilitate detachment of the wiper from the affixed tab,the juncture of the tab with the blade edge is provided with a scored orcreased line, or otherwise nicked or partially cut through the metal asindicated by dotted line 47. To detach the wiper from the affixed tabone merely raises the wiper from the surface of the cover and bends itback and forth, alternately, hinged at said scored or nicked line 47, asindicated generally at 48, by dotted lines, see FIG. 6, until the wiperfinally breaks away and is disjoined and separated from the tab.Obviously, the size of the wiper device to be affixed to the cover isdetermined by the cover planar surface area available.

The most simple affixation means would be to merely tape the flat wiper,per se, on the top surface of the can cover by any of the conventionaladhesive tapes absent the affixation tab.

Obviously, the wiper can be initially cast or formed in three dimensionsor assembled from individual parts, as distinguished from a flat or twodimensional planar configuration, of rigid or flexible material, havingthe arms and tongue operatively disposed in the aforesaid bent operativeangular positions, if desired, see FIGS. 2, 3, and 4.

Some characteristic features of this invention are the provision of apaint brush wiper having an initial flat form adapted to be subsequentlyreadily bent into an operative three dimensional shape; the above paintbrush wiper made of material sufficiently flexible to be readily bent bythe average persons fingers; such wiper originally cast in a rigid threedimensional shape; a paint brush wiper that is adapted for removablesecurement over the top of a paint can and held interlockably thereonagainst accidental displacement forces acting thereon in any direction;and a flexible flat type wiper removably attached to the top or othersurface of a container for convenience of shipping and distribution.

Obviously many modifications and variations of the present invention arepossible in the light of the above teachings. It is therefore to beunderstood, that within the scope of the appended claims, the inventionmay be practiced otherwise than as specifically described.

What is claimed and desired to be protected by Letters Patent of theUnited States is:

l. A brush wiper for an open top can having a body side wall, and havingan inturned rim including a trough having an inner side wall,comprising: I i

a. an elongated'blade member adapted to span the open top of said canand seat on the rim thereof, said blade member having a front brushwiping edge and a rear edge,

b. a U-shaped body member extending rearwardly from said blade memberand coplanar therewith, and adapted to seat on the rim of said can,saidU- thereof,

c. a pair of substantially oppositely disposed similar arms projectinglaterally from said legs, respectively, and coplanar therewith, each armhaving a flexible biceps portion extending laterally from its associatedleg and a forearm portion extending rearwardly from the end of saidflexible biceps portion, said forearm portion adapted for engagementwith the underside of said trough and with the inner surface of the bodyside wall of said can when said flexible biceps portion is bent disposeddownwardly,

d. a flexible tongue member disposed substantially centrally of saidconnecting cross member and extending forwardly from said cross memberand coplanar therewith and adapted for engagement with the inner surfaceof the inner side wall of said trough when said flexible tongue is bentdisposed downwardly into said trough.

2. The brush wiper of claim 1 wherein said forearm portion is adaptedfor engagement with the underside of said trough and said biceps portionis adapted for engagement with the outer surface of the inner side wallof said trough when said flexible biceps portion is bent shaped bodycomprising a pair of spaced legs and disposed downwardly.

3. The brush wiper of claim 1 wherein said brush wiper is formed from asheet of flexible metal.

4. The brush wiper of claim 1 and a flat affixation tab projecting fromthe front brush wiping edge of said blade member and coplanar therewith,a score along the juncture of said tab and said blade member, a paintcan cover, said wiper and tab being supported flat-wise on the topsurface of said cover, and means for securing said tab on said cover.

1. A brush wiper for an open top can having a body side wall, and havingan inturned rim including a trough having an inner side wall,comprising: a. an elongated blade member adapted to span the open top ofsaid can and seat on the rim thereof, said blade member having a frontbrush wiping edge and a rear edge, b. a U-shaped body member extendingrearwardly from said blade member and coplanar therewith, and adapted toseat on the rim of said can, said U-shaped body comprising a pair ofspaced legs and a connecting cross member, said legs being connected tosaid blade member at the rear edge thereof, c. a pair of substantiallyoppositely disposed similar arms projecting laterally from said legs,respectively, and coplanar therewith, each arm having a flexible bicepsportion extending laterally from its associated leg and a forearmportion extending rearwardly from the end of said flexible bicepsportion, said forearm portion adapted for engagement with the undersideof said trough and with the inner surface of the body side wall of saidcan when said flexible biceps portion is bent disposed downwardly, d. aflexible tongue member disposed substantially centrally of saidconnecting cross member and extending forwardly from said cross memberand coplanar therewith and adapted for engagement with the inner surfaceof the inner side wall of said trough when said flexible tongue is bentdisposed downwardly into said trough.
 2. The brush wiper of claim 1wherein said forearm portion is adapted for engagement with theunderside of said trough and said biceps portion is adapted forengagement with the outer surface of the inner side wall of said troughwhen said flexible biceps portion is bent disposed downwardly.
 3. Thebrush wiper of claim 1 wherein said brush wiper is formed from a sheetof flexible metal.
 4. The brush wiper of claim 1 and a flat affixationtab projecting from the front brush wiping edge of said blade member andcoplanar therewith, a score along the juncture of said tab and saidblade member, a paint can cover, said wiper and tab being supportedflat-wise on the top surface of said cover, and means for securing saidtab on said cover.